The House of Hades
by Sand Torrent
Summary: The war god's foe, born from flame / Shall rise to end Jupiter's reign / With a power so great as to open the Gates / In the depths of Teritus, he lies in wait... ((I do not own PJO or HOO, they are Rick Riordan's)


**Prologue**

Perseus Jackson woke up in hell... literally. He was in a dark environment with a stream of black water ten feet away. He looked up to see an orange and black sky. One word rang through his mind: _Tartarus._ He groaned and looked around for Annabeth. Where was she? He then spotted her standing a few feet away and gazing at him. "Rise and shine, Seaweed Brain. We have a job to do." Percy got to his feet unsteadily, groaning. Annabeth was scarred and scratched in several places. He wanted nothing more than to go comfort her... but now wasn't the time. But he couldn't help noticing... even when she looked beaten up, she looked stunning.

"Where do we start?" he inquired. He scanned the wide expanse of unforgiving land around him. Pits of magma and burnt, evil-looking trees were scattered around, and a stone path stretched miles across the land. Bloody corpses and bones littered the area. "I mean... this place is huge." Annabeth shrugged. "I honestly have no idea. But... let's go along the path. If we start encountering more demons, we'll know we're getting close."

Percy nodded, and the two began their trek. They walked along the winding road for several minutes, Percy never taking his eyes off of her. Annabeth's hand brushed against his own, and he held it. "We'll get out of this," Percy promised. Then, the two demigods found themselves where they had begun.

"Now what?" Percy asked. Annabeth sighed. "This place defies physical laws. The spirit of the abyss is toying with us." She thought for a moment, then pointed at the river. "I'm willing to bet that the stream is a tributary of the River Lemnos." Percy raised an eyebrow. "What makes you say that?" Annabeth rolled her eyes. "The Styx and the Lethe don't extend all the way down here, obviously."

Percy raised his hands. "Okay... gotcha. So... how about we just-"

A blinding light erupted in front of the two demigods, forcing them to avert their eyes. When they turned back, they saw the war god in front of them. He was clad in Ancient Greek armor and a tunic. A two-handed sword was on his back. "Ares," Percy said coldly.

The god nodded. "In the flesh. Well, not really. I just projected a portion of my essence into this place." Percy drew Riptide, looking at Ares warily. "What do you want?"

Ares raised a hand. "I'm not here to fight you, kid. You're probably gonna fail your little quest anyways. I'm just here to give you some advice."

"What advice?" Percy scoffed.

Ares narrowed his eyes. "Show some respect, kid. I was going to tell you... find the demigod who walks alone. Only then will you find the Doors of Death."

Percy rolled his eyes. "Some advice. And... why are you helping us?"

A shadow came over Ares's face, and his flaming eyes burned brighter. "I have an old score to settle, Jackson. An ancient vendetta brought about by an enemy."

Annabeth looked doubtful. "What enemy?"

Ares glared at her. "You'll find out soon enough, daughter of Athena." The war god then vanished into the air.

Percy sighed. "Well, that was... interesting."

"Yeah. I wonder what Ares meant. Who is our mystery demigod?"

"Maybe Ares was lying."

Annabeth looked out into the distance, in deep thought. Then, an earsplitting shriek pierced the air. Percy's eyes widened. "What the _hell_ was that?"

Annabeth drew her dagger. "A monster, probably."

The two demigods stood back to back, weapons raised.

Then, a man in a black cloak rose from the black river, chanting a hymn in Latin. He had a rasping, throaty voice. The man looked up, revealing an ancient, withered face. "Perseus Jackson..."

Percy leveled his sword. "Who are you?"

The cloaked man smiled._ "I am but a memory, erased from existence by Terra. Centuries of strife brought to an end by the earth goddess. Has Mars left?"_

Annabeth frowned. "How did you know he was here?"

The man pointed to the river. "_I was listening, daughter of Minerva. But... you are Jackson, no?" _he asked, looking back at Percy.

Percy nodded warily. "What do you need from me?"

The man's eyes widened._ "They are coming! No time, no time!"_

"Who's coming?" Percy asked.

_"No time, boy! Go!"_

The hooded man thrust his hand forward, and everything went black.

.


End file.
